Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Adelaide

Another in the previously mentioned Ungerer books with a one-word title--of an animal's name-- series... One where animal meets man. Animal befriends man. And animal ultimately saves the day. The series also includes Emile, Crictor, Rufus and Orlando. And again, I'm not totally sure if he meant them as a series, but they are certainly peas in a literary pod. This one is about a kangaroo born with wings.

Adelaide's parents were surprised when they saw that their daughter had wings. As Adelaide grew, her wings became larger and larger. She soon learned to fly. She liked to look at the birds and airplanes passing over the desert, and wished she could travel too.

Yes... with her wings comes wanderlust... one that takes her to the world of man, ultimately landing her in Paris. Fame and fortune find her, of course (she's a winged kangaroo, for goodness sake!)... but true celebrity awaits when she risks her life to save some children from a blazing fire.

Only then does she find happiness that's worth settling down for... Though his humor is somewhat sinister at times, Tomi's heart always rings true, finding virtue in the simplest of heroism and love in the unlikeliness of places.